Shimogawara Tomomi was born on the 17th of August 1974 in Tokyo, but spent most of her childhood in the Chiba prefecture.
Tomomi‘s first venture into the entertainment industry was as a gravure idol, where she modeled under the pseudonyms Miura Ayaka and Toomine Arisa. She also worked as an assistant on the Asahi Television drama “Sanma no nandemo Darby” under the name Toomine Arisa. It was around this time when she was first discovered by Komuro Tetsuya. Following his meeting with Tomomi, who was at this time still operating under the name Toomine, Komuro became interested in her, and it was during this period that they began their relationship.
At this time, Tomomi was striving to become an actress, but it was while singing a cover of one of trf‘s songs that Komuro became aware of her vocal ability. He decided then and there to promote her as a solo musician. Just before her debut, the press discovered the pair’s relationship, and media coverage surrounding the couple quickly escalated.
In June 1995, Tomomi was given a new stage name by Komuro, which was formed from his initials T.K. Under the new alias Tomomi Kahala, the artist first appeared in August in the image video PARADOX, which aired on "Fuji Television Presents Visual Queen of the Year." A mere month later, Tomomi became the sole artist on the label ORUMOK RECORDS, which was established by Komuro as a new branch of Pioneer LDC.
keep yourself alive was released in mid-September and peaked at number eight on the Oricon. Tomomi’s second single, I BELIEVE, was released a month later and reached number four on the Oricon.
March 1996 saw the release of Tomomi‘s third single, and on the 25th I BELIEVE had sold a record breaking 1,000,000 copies. This was quickly followed with the news that her third single I’m proud had also sold 1,000,000 units. The month of June saw the release of Tomomi‘s first album LOVE BRACE, which achieved the number one place on the Oricon. The album sold two million copies within seven weeks, which at the time was the highest amount of units in such a short period of time.
Following the success of her previous releases, Tomomi released her fifth single save your dream, which became her first number one maxi-single. On New Year’s Eve at the "47th NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen," Tomomi performed a special piano arrangement of the hit song I’m proud.
In April 1997, Tomomi was appointed as the face of Kanebo Comestics, with her first appearance in a commercial for “Bronzelove.” It used her upcoming song Hate tell a lie as the backing track. Hate tell a lie became her third consecutive single to sell over 1,000,000 copies. With the release of her seventh single LOVE IS ALL MUSIC in July, plus her eighth single Tanoshiku tanoshiku yasashikune and her second album storytelling in December, Tomomi maintained her streak of number one releases. For the second year in a row, Tomomi appeared at the "48th NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen," performing Hate tell a lie accompanied by Komuro on guitar.
In June 1998, Tomomi moved from her current record label to Warner Music Japan, following reports of a rift in her relationship with Komuro Tetsuya. Rumours also abounded of the pair indulging in recreational drug use. Naturally, these rumours caused unrest amongst her fans, and her first single under her new label abruptly halted her streak of number one releases. In July, Tomomi made her acting debut in the Fuji Television drama “Boy Hunt." In the same month, Tomomi also contributed one of her songs, here we are, as the theme song for the TBS series “Rendez-vous.”
Following the release of her third album nine cubes in November, Tomomi‘s relationship with Komuro took a turn for the worse. In a gesture to seemingly to start things afresh at her appearance at the"49th NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen," Tomomi sported a short haircut while she performed daily news, which was her last single to be produced by Komuro.
On January 30th, 1999, Tomomi was admitted to hospital following gas poisoning at her home. It was also around this time that reports stated that her relationship with Komuro had come to an end. The following month signaled the release of Tomomi‘s first best-of album kahala compilation, which peaked at number one on the Oricon. Following her period in hospital, Tomomi opted to take an indefinite hiatus from the entertainment industry.
In May, Tomomi went to Production Ogi in order to change her household registry and also visited a newspaper company for an interview regarding a comeback to the music industry. However, only a week later, Tomomi collapsed in the lobby of her apartment block due to anemia and was hospitalized. On June 17th, while visiting the Horse Club Arcadia in Gotemba, Tomomi announced in an interview that she would shortly be returning to the music industry. However, a mere week later, Tomomi retracted her statement with the bizarre claim that she was getting married. There was no further news about whom she allegedly married, and the entire affair was rather confusing and shrouded in mystery.
The month of July saw the establishment of Tomomi‘s fanclub Pretty Eye and the release of her fourteenth single, as A person. Tomomi also held various public relations events in four cities nationwide and made an appearance on “MUSIC STATION," which was her first television appearance in eight months. November saw the release of her fourth album, ONE FINE DAY, which was produced by notable music producer Masato “Max” Matsuura. It was around this time that Tomomi held her first fan event; however, the following year she made an announcement that in order to return to the industry at her full potential, she felt that another break was in order. In this announcement, Tomomi detailed plans for a period of studying abroad in Canada.
Despite Tomomi‘s hiatus, late January saw the release of Mirai wo shinjite, her first photo and essay collection that sold over 15,000,000 copies. In July, Tomomi returned from Canada to make an appearance in Nihon Television’s “Susumu nu! Denpa shounen.” In January 2001, Tomomi collaborated with producer Andy Marvel, who had worked with Celine Dion and Diana King. The song Never Say Never was set to be included on one of Andy Marvel’s compilation albums, but it was never released.
Eight months after returning to Japan, Tomomi performed at Shibuya AX in February. Within Japan, the single Never Say Never signaled a more triumphant return for Tomomi and peaked at number ten on the Oricon. In July, Tomomi unveiled her second photo and essay collection, Mirai wo shinjite Part 2, and in celebration of the release she held her first meet and greet event. The following month signaled the release of her nineteenth single PRECIOUS, which was written by song writer Vincent Degiorgio, who had also written hits for popular American boy band *NSYNC.
For the first time since her debut, Tomomi held her first national tour. It saw her perform at six live venues. In October, she became a regular on the radio show on Nippon Cultural Broadcasting titled “Tomomi Kahala no LIPS PARTY 21.jp," which she hosted every Tuesday until December. It was around this period that Tomomi released her fifth album, Love Again, and performed at several DJ events under the alias DJ TOMO.
The beginning of 2002 saw Tomomi presenting “Nippon yukai kazoku” alongside talent Korokke. In July, Warner Music Japan released a second best-of compilation, which was followed up in August with a hall tour. That December saw the artist returning to perform at the "53rd NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen," at which she performed Akiramemashou with popular girl group ZONE as her backing band.
The following year saw Tomomi's single PLEASURE used as the opening theme for the anime "Crayon Shin-chan." The remainder of the year was fairly low-key for Tomomi, aside from a performance in December at the "54th NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen."
In March 2004, Tomomi was cast to star in a two hour special of the period drama “Mito koumon,” which was broadcast in September and saw her supported by singers SAYAKA and MEGUMI. In May, Tomomi held her second concert tour throughout Japan, and in August she changed labels to Universal Sigma, a division under Universal Music. Following her move to Universal Sigma, Tomomi celebrated her 30th birthday and subsequently changed her performing name to Tomomi Kahara.
In September, Tomomi released her first single under her new alias; Anata ga ireba was a cover of a Korean ballad titled Geu Dae Man It Da Myeon. The song, which was originally performed by the now defunct Korean pop duo Ilkiyebo, was performed in November by Tomomi and a former member of Ilkiyebo, Kang Hyun Min, on Fuji Television’s “Bokura no ongaku.” The single received a more positive reception than some of its predecessors, selling around 10,000,000 units through a combination of physical sales and via official download websites.
The year 2005 signaled the 10th anniversary since Tomomi‘s debut, and in May she released her twenty-fourth single, Namida no tsuzuki. The following month, her sixth studio album NAKED came out. The album artwork showed Tomomi in a new light, with the artist appearing semi-nude on the sleeve. This release was quickly followed up with the announcement of a 10th anniversary celebration concert, and in August, Tomomimade her musical debut as Anne in a production of Anne of Green Gables. Tomomi finished off the year with the release of the photo book Crystallize, which featured photographs of the artist semi-nude. The book sold more than 5,000,000 copies.
In February 2006, Tomomi released her first double A-side single, Hana/Keep On Running, and followed up the release in July with Ano sayonara ni sayonara, which was penned by Nakajima Miyuki. In August, Tomomi once again returned to the stage for the second consecutive year as Anne in the musical Anne of Green Gables. Activities surrounding Tomomi became rather quiet following an announcement that the singer was suffering from acute bronchitis and inflammation of the vocal chords.
2007 started with Tomomi on hiatus in order to fully recover from her illnesses, and it was in May that she made a guest appearance at the Grand Shrine of Ise. In June, Tomomi announced that she would return to the music industry, but it was announced on June 29th that on the previous day, Production Ogi had terminated their contract with her. Subsequently, her official fanclub also dissolved on June 29th, and her contract with Universal Sigma expired prematurely on the 28th.
Three months following this shocking announcement, Tomomi opened her own fan blog, apologizing for the cancellation of her upcoming projects. In her blog, Tomomi explained that the termination of her contracts came following a period of poor mental health and the fracturing of her coccyx. Within the blog, she also denied the rumours that the press had published stating that she had become addicted to sleeping pills. She assured fans that she was in the best of health. However, only nine days after the blog had been established, it was closed down.
Silence surrounded the artist until July 10th, 2008, when Tomomi attended a party in Tokyo Midtown, promising fans that she would return to the music industry. However, since the announcement, no more has been heard regarding a possible comeback.
On January 17th, 2009, Tomomi was reportedly taken to the hospital with possible acute drug intoxication, and no further information has been offered about the artist.
There is no denying that Tomomi’s career has been tumultuous, with its many ups and downs. However, one cannot fail to admire the tenacity that she has shown throughout her musical career, and while one hopes that Tomomi Kahara will return, we can at least be thankful for the wonderful music that already exists.
